This section provides background information related to the present disclosure which is not necessarily prior art.
Compressors may be used in a wide variety of applications to increase the pressure of a working fluid. For example, compressors may be incorporated into an industrial or residential refrigeration, heat pump, HVAC, or chiller system to provide a desired heating or cooling effect by circulating the working fluid amongst the various components of each system. Such compressors typically include a motor that selectively drives a compression mechanism to increase the pressure of the working fluid, thereby causing the working fluid to circulate within the particular system.
The compression mechanism and motor are typically disposed within a shell of the compressor and are positioned relative to one another to allow the motor to drive the compression mechanism during use. A drive shaft typically extends between the motor and the compression mechanism and transmits a rotational force generated by the motor to the compression mechanism. Proper alignment of the motor, the drive shaft, and the compression mechanism is required to permit each component to function properly and to prevent damage to and/or unnecessary wear on the various components.
A bearing housing may be retained within and positioned relative to the shell by press-fitting the bearing housing into the shell. The motor may also be attached to the shell by press-fitting a stator of the motor into the shell or by attaching the stator to a fixture disposed within the shell to properly position the motor within and relative to the shell. Once the position of the bearing housing and the position of the stator are fixed relative to the shell, the relative position between the bearing housing and the motor is likewise fixed. Because the bearing housing rotatably supports the compression mechanism within the shell, fixing a position of the bearing housing relative to the motor likewise fixes a position of the compression mechanism relative to the motor, which allows the motor to properly engage and drive the compression mechanism—via the drive shaft—during use.
While conventional compressors adequately retain and position a bearing housing and a motor within a compressor shell, such compressors are often difficult to manufacture. Namely, establishing the proper position of the bearing housing and/or the stator relative to a compressor shell during manufacturing is often difficult and typically requires use of numerous fixtures to hold the various components prior to the components being assembled to the shell. As such, attaching the bearing housing and the stator to the compressor shell in a conventional manner adds to the overall complexity and cost of manufacturing the compressor and, as a result, adds to the overall cost of the compressor.